The BEAST vs. The SPIDER

Who's going to step up to Silva? After beating the top four guys in the division by either TKO, KO or submission, he essentially cleaned out the division. It's no secret that Dan "The Beast" Henderson, the guy who just took Rampage to a five round decision which he lost but looked good doing it, has fought at middle weight (indeed, he held both the LHW and MW belts in PRIDE before it was dissolved), but he made it very clear that he would like to stay at LHW. Apparently White talked him into doing what would obviously be a smart move on his part, namely to drop down to 185 to challenge Anderson "The Spider" Silva. He has all the tools to beat Silva who right now is making the case for being the best pound for pound fighter in MMA (although most give that title to Fedor or GSP). Bottom line is that for fans this is good medicine!

From mmamania.com:

Day of reckoning: Henderson vs. Silva projected for UFC 82

There are main events, and there are MAIN EVENTS.

Dan “Hollywood” Henderson (22-6), after much resistance, has conceded to moving down a weight class to try and dethrone current UFC middleweight champion Anderson “The Spider” Silva (20-4).

The bout is tentatively scheduled to headline UFC 82 at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio on March 1st.

The announcement was made during the post-fight press conference for UFC 78, which took place Saturday at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.

Henderson is coming off a disappointing loss against current light heavyweight champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson at UFC 75. While the result may not have been what he wanted, the bout was a showcase of upper-level mixed martial arts.

At the time, Henderson was steadfast in his decision to remain at 205lbs.

In addition to knocking out Wanderlei Silva at PRIDE 33, Hendo is also only one of three people to hold victories over current UFC Heavyweight contender Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira.

He’ll need every ounce of that experience against “The Spider”, who has completely dominated the UFC middleweight division with five straight wins including four devastating (T)KO’s.

Silva is also considered by many to be the sport’s top pound-for-pound fighter and may solidify that ranking with a dominant performance over Henderson, one of the few remaining fighters seen as a viable threat to the middleweight title.

Things could get very interesting in 2008.

Stay tuned